CA swiftly confirms Sonny Angara as new DepEd secretary

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Appointments (CA) on Wednesday swiftly confirmed the ad interim appointment of Sonny Angara as the new Department of Education Secretary.

Angara's appointment breezed through his former colleagues, having served in both the House of Representatives and the Senate.

During the CA Committee on Education's hearing led by Sen. Raffy Tulfo, Angara did not have to speak as there were no questions asked by both the House and Senate representatives in the CA.

The panel hearing lasted a mere five minutes.

"With these reasons not even meaning to mention the Secretary's academic achievements, awards, and public service work, I know that Secretary Sonny will be more than capable of leading the country to a better future, to the students that he will take under his wing," Tulfo said.

CA Majority Floor Leader Rep. Luis Raymund Villafuerte Jr. (2nd District, Camarines Sur) made the motion to confirm Angara's appointment during the plenary session on the recommendation of the education committee.

Both his former colleagues from the upper and lower houses sang praises for the new education secretary during the plenary session.

"The commission hereby confirms the ad interim appointment of the honorable Juan Edgardo Manalang Angara as Secretary of the Department of Education," said CA Chair and Senate President Francis Escudero, banging his gavel to make it final.

Angara assumed his new role as DepEd secretary on July 19 following the resignation of former Education Secretary and Vice President Sara Duterte exactly a month before.

He is set to lead the education department, the government's biggest bureaucracy and, in Marcos' words, "arguably the most important department" in the executive, at a time when it is shepherding key education reforms and curriculum revisions.

DepEd rolled out this school year its phased implementation of the Matatag curriculum, which aims to arrest learning losses and increase students' mastery of numeracy and literacy in the early years.

Angara was, until recently, the chairperson of the Senate subcommittee on constitutional amendments and revision of codes. During one Senate committee deliberation on the proposed Charter change, Angara insisted on retaining Filipino control of basic education amid proposals to open higher education to foreign ownership.

The DepEd secretary also previously served as the chairman of the Senate committee on youth, where he “shepherded” reforms in the Sangguniang Kabataan, including the issuance of monthly honoraria to SK members, sectaries and treasurers, according to his bio in the Senate website.

Angara completed his basic education at Xavier School, and finished his undergraduate degree in International Relations with honors from the London School of Economics. He finished his law degree at the UP College of Law and earned his Master of Laws degree from the Harvard Law School.